How Does One Celebrate 11 Years of Marriage......?

By going fishing....of course! Today is the first day of Spring (yay).... and my parents anniversary....and OUR anniversary! March 21st, 1998.....hard to believe. What better way to celebrate than to take our 3 children fishing on the warmest day of the year so far. We went to a little pond in Draper and although we werent very successful (only caught one fish), we had a lot of fun and the kids really enjoyed themselves. Afterward we treated them to Burger King and Addie wore her crown proudly, albeit crooked. Our kids really come first at this time in our lives so it seemed appropriate to have some fun with them today...besides, we have a date tommorow courtesy of Nate and Alisa. We are going to see the movie "Duplicity"....hopefully its a good movie! Here is a little slideshow of pictures we took today at the pond.

10 Years Together.....

I can hardly believe that tomorrow I will have been married to Denver for 10 years. It doesnt seem like it has been that long since the first day I met him. In fact it almost feels like yesterday. We knew each other at a distance for a year or so before we actually started dating. Then it took another year before we actually married.

March 21, 1998 was a beautiful day in Pacific Grove, California. It was during the time of 'El Nino' if you remember that and I was so worried that the place we were getting married was washed away. The chances of any flowers being intact were slim to none. But, the day we got married this field of yellow flowers had completely bloomed. It was GORGEOUS! We couldnt have planned it if we tried. Funny enough, the next day all of those blooms had blown away..it felt like they had been there just for us. Our wedding was simple and perfect and I will never forget it. The next 10 years have flown by and yet so much has happened. Ups and downs of course, as in any marriage. But great memories and 3 beautiful children. I look forward to 10 more HAPPY years with you Denver....and then 10 more after that.....etc, etc, etc.

Thanksgiving and an Anniversary.....

This will be a long entry because Im combining 2 events. First, Thanksgiving. We had a wonderful day. My parents flew in from Las Vegas and we all met at Nate and Alisa's house for really yummy food....of course! I love Thanksgiving. Nathan asked me to bless the food which was a disaster. I have a thing about praying in front of people. I would rather give a 20 minute talk than say a prayer....I know, Im strange but it's true. Im such a boob....I cant say anything without crying anymore but I was overcome with happiness being with my family and our new little nephew/grandson/son, and just being so grateful. It was just too much....so hopefully everyone understood that and felt that the food was properly blessed in spite of my weakness. I have so much to be Thankful for. Ive been relatively healthy my whole life. I have a really great family both immediate and extended (yes, that includes you all in Kentucky!) a few really great friends and of course I have 3 perfect children with whom make my life complete. Although I have had my struggles and still continue to have them in some areas of my life, they are nothing in comparison to what I have and who I am. So, for that I will continue to thank my Father in Heaven who continues to bless me in spite of my weaknesses and shortcomings.

Now, I had some great pictures of our Thanksgiving Day celebration but unfortunately my dad accidentally erased them off of my camera....and since it was a day later, I couldnt really recreate the pictures so, that is why there are no pictures to post for Turkey Day. Sorry Jeff and Nicola, I lost some great pics of you guys......:( The pictures I have posted with this entry can be clicked on to view them in larger format. I just did them small so the entry wouldnt be so big.....

Saturday night was my maternal Grandparents' 70th wedding anniversary. 70 years together....can you imagine that? They are so cute and I really love that I live so close to them. I dont see them nearly enough but am grateful that they are just around the corner. We had a little celebration at the church where friends and family stopped in for cake and a visit. It was really nice. I saw some of my own cousins that I havent seen in 20 years! Sadly they have never lived that far away but we just didnt manage to keep in touch. I was very excited to see them all again. We promised to keep in touch but you know how life goes. I probably wont see them again for a few years.....or as long as my grandfather is alive anyway. Im sure the next time we see each again will be for grandpas funeral. He is very old and weak... although still has his mind with him most of the time which is an accomplisment for 93 years old! Anyway, I took lots of pictures for this event and didnt let my dad handle my camera again....just to be safe (wink wink) A really cool thing was my aunt Jill made us all copies of some journal entries of my great great great great grandma/grandpa Lloyd. I have always known that I had pioneers in my family but have never known any of the stories. This woman, Susannah Stone Lloyd not only came across the plains but was with the ill fated Willie Handcart company. It was really cool to finally have a story for one of these great people who sacrificed so much for what she believed in....so cool.

Well, it is Sunday and I am getting ready to go to work tonight. Im dreading the next few weeks as it is total mayhem at the post office and I will be working 12 hours days more than likely. Luckily it is just for 3 weeks though. We got most of our Christmas decor up minus the tree. I think we will have to do that next weekend. So, that is it for our week. I hope everyone who reads this enjoyed their Thanksgiving holiday and I want you all to know how grateful I am to have you in my life however you may fit into it.

Warm Wishes
Vanessa